Clare's reflections - a difficult week
A tough week here at October Books with the threat of right wing action in Portswood on Wednesday. I know I felt uneasy and anxious all day and was really relieved that Portswood and our refugee and asylum seeker friends at Highfield Hotel were not targeted. Many thanks to all who expressed support and thanks and to those who joined the peaceful gathering and walk to Grosvenor Square. Many of our customers have said that the City’s collective actions did Southampton proud.
On Tuesday this week we also had some difficult conversations at our Operation Thrive meeting. Despite increases in card and food sales, bulk sales of books to schools and income from our community space over the last year, we have seen a decrease in the sale of books in the shop and through our online shop on bookshop.org . The subsequent reduction in income means we aren’t breaking even at present. One of the things we talked about in the meeting was reducing all our hours by 10% temporarily. The decision on this hasn’t yet been made, but we want you all to know that we are considering this to ensure longer term viability. One easy thing you can do to help, wherever you are, is to share our bookshop.org page with friends and family and ask them to buy through us… rather than other online retailers who won’t be mentioned :-)
There are many positives too, another amazing music event in the shop this week with Oud Wanderings with Abderraouf Ouertani playing the oud and Susannah Knight narrating the story of his journey from Istanbul to India. A full house and wonderful to come together and celebrate the music and stories of other cultures. We are also growing our connection with Artful Scribe, our local not-for-profit writer development agency. We are planning to work with them in March at the LitFest at MAST and will be hosting some writing sessions at the shop with Matt West this autumn. Watch this space for more information.
As mentioned in previous blogs, we are looking for someone to help us with our book-keeping and financial management, as Ellen is stepping down from the role in the next couple of months. Do let us know if you know of anyone who may be interested. A background in accountancy or book-keeping is preferred along with a passion for helping a local independent bookshop to thrive. Write to me clare@octoberbooks.org if interested.
Many thanks to you all for your continued support
